He currently sits near the inn on Theramore Isle. When spoken to he says a funny little rhyme: "He'll bring you mead, he'll bring you beer, a smiling grin from ear to ear, he's served us all from year to year, we call him Smiling Jim."

He has a brother, Vincent Hyal, in Menethil Harbor who is unaware of the tragedy of the Shady Rest Inn and sends the player to check on James.

With the coming of patch 2.3, the story of Shady Rest Inn finally got an ending.